The Center will provide technical assistance to state DOT's and the FHWA on coastal engineering design issues as requested. This technical assistance can include any coastal engineering issues such as revetment design to survive wave attack, tidal scour, hydrodynamic modeling of tidal currents and waves, shoreline erosion response alternatives, and coastal runoff water quality.

One example of technical assistance was the development of conceptual design alternatives for Florida Highway 399 for the Eastern Federal Lands Highway Division. This roadway, the link between Pensacola Beach and Navarre Beach , has been damaged three times during landfall of tropical hurricanes and storms since 1995. The roadway is located in the unique barrier island ecosystem of the Gulf Islands National Seashore. Objectives include designing a roadway that is more resistant to storm overwash events during hurricanes while minimizing the impacts on the physical and ecological processes on the barrier island. The sketch above is one of the preliminary alternative designs suggested by the Center.